Daniel must be in the kitchen, brewing the drink that she longed to taste on her lips.
The bedroom door opened, and Daniel met her gaze. He strolled into the room, a steaming cup of creamy coffee in his hand. The handsome man was shirtless, his hair wet, with only a white towel covering his hips.
"Morning, beautiful." The corners of his mouth lifted, and his gaze roamed over her naked flesh. Heat followed wherever his glances went. He extended the cup to her.
"Thank you." She took a sip.
"I think the spell is broken." He moved to her and wrapped her in his arms.
She inhaled deeply, smelling soap and man, and that scent filled her with a new wave of desire. She had to stop her brain from dipping lower, so she met his gaze instead of staring at the towel and willing it to fall. "What makes you think the spell is broken?"
He shrugged. "I showered, brewed coffee, and nothing happened."
"We can hope, but I really doubt it." She closed her eyes, and reality slipped away. It was just him and her, and that fresh man scent that drove her to kiss his neck, his chest. He groaned, and something poked at her. Pulling away slightly, she smiled as the towel rose. She ripped it away and wrapped her fingers around his hard cock. In the sunlight, he looked even better than last night.
Morgan put her coffee mug on the dresser and ran her warm palm along his muscled abs. Her lips trailed along, dropping feathery kisses on his skin as she slowly sank to her knees.
Pre-cum leaked from him, and she licked away the wet essence. She cupped his balls in her hand and ran the tip of her tongue along his entire length, from head to base, back to head again.
He groaned, and his fingers tangled in her hair.
She took him in her mouth, deep, then shallow, deep again. His cock grew heavier between her lips. Morgan squeezed his balls tighter, sucked him harder. As her hand released him, so did her mouth. Another squeeze, another suck, and he was panting above her. She ran her hands along his thighs, and they trembled.
That was power, true feminine power without the aid of any magic. The ability to bring a man to his knees, to have him scream her name along with his release.
He spilled into her mouth, and she swallowed it all.
Daniel lifted her up and brought her to the bed. He buried his head between her legs. Unlike last night's teasing kisses and lingering touches, this time was pure hunger. He didn't play; he feasted. His tongue dipped deeper, harder. His fingers aided. The man sucked her clit into his mouth, flipping his tongue over and over the sensitive bud while his fingers moved inside her. Her hips rolled. His name escaped through her lips, and everything exploded without any warning. He pulled his hand away. Her pussy clenched and released against air. The spasms didn't subside.
Now, Daniel leaned against the dresser, his hands not even close to her body, yet she still panted, still screamed, still spasmed. The orgasm rode through her, longer than ever, harder than ever. After this encounter, she had no intention of letting that man walk out of her life. No way! She had to break that spell.
Morgan sat up and met his gaze. A flush worked over her skin, and he devoured her with his gaze.
"Come on, get your mind out of the gutter, and let's work on breaking this spell. We can return to the sex when that is done."
He smiled at her, an open-mouthed grin that told her exactly what he had in mind, and she doubted clothing was necessary for it.
She turned away, trying her hardest not to be distracted by his naked form.
“I called Jessie’s parents.” Now when she met his gaze, he appeared serious. The playfulness and sexy smirk were gone. "They bitched me out and said never to contact them again."
Morgan went to her closet and pulled out a pair of jeans and a blue sweater. "What did you tell them?"
"I lied, told them that I had lent her a book that I needed back. They said they have never seen her read."
“We might just have to visit them."
"How? When I spoke to them, I think they were getting ready to go to the hospital to visit her."
She smiled now, and the perfect idea formed in her head. "I need to hit the shower, but after that, are you up for doing a little breaking and entering?"
****
Jessie's family lived on the edge of a forest. All the neighbors were farther away, the lots large and houses small. Their home was buried between trees and bushes. Morgan parked the car a block away and cut though the woods until they reached the correct house. The small masonry ranch stood alone, as though abandoned, amongst woods and shrubs. A small flower garden circled the property, but the flowers were dead and covered with weeds. She took a step toward it, listening intently to make sure there were no neighbors around. They couldn't see any, nor hear them.
"This house is so secluded. It should be easy to break in without being noticed."
Birds chirped overhead. Daniel cursed.
She turned around and faced him, smiled, trying not to laugh. "Nice hairdo." A pile of white bird shit now covered his dark hair. "Looks like your bad luck is starting to come back.”
He looked grossed out. "Now I want to take a very hot shower. Let’s hurry."
Morgan waved her hand over his head, and the pile of bird shit disappeared. "There, it's like that never happened."
Daniel kissed her lips. "Thank you. What would I do without you? You're like my guardian angel."
She rolled her eyes. "More like your guardian witch."
They crossed the yard to the house. For a second, Morgan considered using her magic to open a window and climb inside, but instead she lifted the flowerpot by the door. Nothing was underneath it. Next was the welcome mat, and a single key lay on the concrete step. She used that to get inside.
"Follow me and don't touch anything," Morgan said. They went though the house, checking room after room until coming upon one that had teenage music star posters donning the walls. "This is it." She stepped into the room. Daniel followed.
They searched up and down, in every drawer and every shelf, but didn't find a single spell book. Morgan flipped through notebooks and spare sheets of paper. All were doodled with Daniel and Jessie's names inside little hearts.
Where would Jessie hide the spell book? Unless if Jessie didn't actually cast the…
"Freeze!" A voice, somewhere behind her, shouted. When Morgan turned to the sound, she was met by a man, a woman, and the barrel of a shotgun. Her heart beat wildly inside her chest, and her life started flashing before her eyes. How were they going to get out of this one?
"Who are you?" the man holding the gun asked.
Morgan had to think fast. She had to find the damn spell book and break the curse.
"I'm your daughter's teacher. The guy who called this morning."
She turned to Daniel. He met her with a nervous smile, his hands high in the air.
"Oh, so you're the idiot who got a stick up his ass over some stupid book.” The father was obviously fuming with anger. His gun was trained on Daniel. "News flash, idiot. You’re breaking and entering." He cocked it, ready to blow.
She had to do something. Their lives hung in the balance. Even if he didn't shoot, they were bound to call the cops. It was actually a surprise they hadn't done so already.
Just like that, the thought came crushing, rushing through her. They hadn't called the cops! Normally, in a break-in, the man goes to confront the assailant while the woman calls the cops. Why hadn’t Jessie's mother called them? And why did a strange look cross her face when her husband mentioned a book? Morgan hadn't been able to find the book in Jessie's room, so maybe it wasn't she who cast the spell? Maybe her mother did it instead?
The scattered puzzle pieces came together. They formed a picture different from the one she hoped to see. She had it all wrong, was searching wrong. What if her suspicion was wrong, though? Hell! If she accused Jessie's mother, that would stall them and give her time to figure out who really cast the spell.
"You." She glared at the mother now. "You did this.
"
"What are you talking about?" the husband asked.
The woman's lips quivered.
"You were the one who cast the spell."
Now everyone gawked at Morgan. The man's hand started to shake under the weight of the gun. "What the fuck are you talking about?" He turned to his wife. "Honey, call the cops. These intruders are insane. They're dangerous." His voice trembled as he instructed her.
The woman held a cell phone in her hand, but didn't move to place the call. Morgan proceeded, running on instinct as cold sweat covered her body. This could go in any one of three ways. Either the woman confessed to casting the spell and helped them break it, or they would call the doctors, who would put her in one of those fancy strait-jackets, or the husband would shoot them both.
She swallowed hard. "You fucked up with the spell, and now your daughter's life hangs in the balance."
The mother paled.
It all made perfect sense now! With magic this dark, there was usually a sacrifice. It hasn’t occurred to Morgan until now, but Jessie was in a coma. She was the sacrifice. And as with anything, the sacrifice always died in the end. "You didn't know that, did you? You didn't realize she's likely to die soon, all because you played with the wrong thing."
The woman trembled, nodded.
"Jessie threatened Daniel with cursing him. She was obsessed with him. You found the spell book in her room and used it in hopes of making her get over the obsession, didn't you?"
The cell phone fell from the woman's hands. She covered her face. "Yes. I cast the spell. I figured if he became unlucky, she would be repulsed by him and get over her crush."
The shotgun lowered, and the man turned to his wife. He swayed on his feet, the shock sinking in him. “Magic spells don’t exist,” he muttered, but it sounded like he didn’t buy the words he spoke.
This was her chance. Morgan took a step toward the woman. "I need to see the spell you used."
She shook her head. Tears streamed through her eyes. "I can't. I'm scared."
Nerves raced along her spine. "There are several different kinds of bad luck spells. Depending on the kind you used, lives are in danger. In some spells, only the cursed person dies once his luck runs out. But with other spells, the sacrifice dies, too."
"No." She shook her head. "No. There was no sacrifice used."
"Yes, there was. Your daughter."
A panicked scream tore from the other woman. "No! I did this for my daughter. I didn't sacrifice her."
"Why is she in a coma than? Why is she paying the price for your actions?"
The woman was now as pale as a sheet of snow. She shook like a leaf in the wind.
"Let me see the spell you used."
The mother finally nodded and moved through the house. They all followed, silence stretching between them.
They all met around the kitchen table, and the woman pulled the book out from between all her cookbooks. She flipped to the earmarked page, and Morgan read over the Latin incantation and the inaccurate translation. Dread formed in the pit of her stomach. "This particular spell kills in seven days. The cursed person suffers uncanny bad luck on the first five days, and his luck seems to almost lift on the sixth. He dies on the seventh. And the sacrifice falls into a deep sleep within hours of the curse being cast. When the cursed person dies, the sacrifice dies, too."
The woman cried again. "But it doesn't say that anywhere in the translation."
"Translation is wrong."
She sank into the chair, her husband beside her. “I don’t get it. How did I make Jessie into a sacrifice?”
Morgan pointed to the translated part of the spell. “Here it says to hold a picture of the person who you give this gift to.”
The woman nodded. “Yes, I cast this spell for Jessie’s sake, so I held her picture.”
“The translation of ‘give this gift to’ is wrong. It actually said sacrifice. In the old days, some people would willingly become a sacrifice thinking that they were giving a gift to those around them.”
"What can we do?" the husband finally spoke up, the reality of what his wife had done clearly sinking in. "Is there a way to break the spell?"
Her heart squeezed. Phantom pain shot through her. She had truly hoped there would be an undo spell to the one Jessie’s mother had used. However, Morgan’s worst fears were confirmed as she read over the spell again. "It's risky, and I've never actually heard of the spell working."
"But … but we can try it, right?" the father asked.
"How risky?" Daniel's hand caressed her back. His voice filtered through her.
"It involves time reversal, and it can backfire. If it works, time rewinds to the day before the spell was cast, and everyone’s memory is erased. None of you will remember what happened." None of them, except her. The one casting the spell would remember. She would remember bits and pieces, would remember his face and his body, but nothing else. Not his name. Not his address. "And if the spell backfires, we all die, instantly."
"What are the chances of it working?" the father asked.
"Like I said, it’s rare. The last recorded time this spell actually worked was over a century ago."
"Will Jessie die, too, if the spell backfires?" the mother asked now.
Morgan shook her head. "Just the four of us in this room would die. She would likely be spared."
"Let’s do it then," both the parents said in unison.
"We need to talk." Daniel took her hand. "Outside."
She followed him out of the house, and he pushed her against the brick wall.
"I don't like it. Don't do the spell."
"I have to do it. If I don't do the spell you die tomorrow."
He braced his arms on either side of her. His lips lingered above hers. "Yes, tomorrow. That gives us a day. If you do the spell and it backfires we all die now."
Morgan cleared her throat. Her heart thumped inside her chest. "The spell has a slim chance of working. We have to try it."
Sadness marked his features, and it stole her breath away. The hurt on his face radiated through him, through her. "If it works I won't remember you."
She nodded softly.
His fingers caressed her cheek. His lips touched hers. "Morgan, I'm falling for you. It feels like you took a piece of my soul. I don't want to know a day without you. If I have to choose living the rest of my life without having met you, or living only one day in your arms, I'll choose the one day." He pulled her into his embrace, held her tight. "Please tell me you feel the same."
Tears rolled down her face. She kissed his lips, inhaled his scent. Everything inside her seemed to cry, from her heart to her soul, which was fused with his. Even if the spell succeeded, that piece would stay with her, and for the rest of her life she would long for the man she couldn’t even remember. "I do feel the same. That is why I have to do this."
His hold tightened. "No. Let’s just leave now. Go back to your place and stay in bed all day. We have one more day together."
"No. I can't do that. We have to do the spell."
"Why?" His voice was louder now, harsher.
"Because your wish is selfish."
"How is it selfish?"
She broke free of his grip and turned toward the door. "All you’re thinking about is yourself."
"No." He took her hand, pulled her back to him. "I'm thinking about us, together. How is that selfish?"
Morgan placed her hands on his chest and breathed deep, intoxicated by his presence. "I see it differently. If I had a choice to either never know you again, but know that you are alive and safe somewhere, over spending one day with you and having to bury you at the end of it, guess which would I choose." With those final words, she escaped his grip and rushed back inside.
Chapter Seven
She lit the three black candles. Moonlight illuminated through the large living room windows as all four of them sat on the floor. They formed a circle. On one side, she held Daniel's hand. His warmth traveled through her, filling her
with emotions she didn't want to think about, as they brought pain and sorrow to her heart. On the other side, she gripped Jessie's father hand. His fingers were icy, and cold sweat dampened his palm.
The spell required night and moonlight, so they had waited, spending their last day together. Daniel had given up on convincing her to not do the spell. He seemed to understand her excuse for disagreeing with him. Instead, he held her in his arms, rocked her, kissed her, reminded her that he cared. They had made love again in the woods amongst the trees and nature. Eating a picnic by the pond a few miles away from Jessie's parent's house, Morgan jotted down the address of her store on a sheet of paper and slipped it into his pants pocket.
"What is this for?" he had asked.
"If this spell works, you won't remember me or coming to my store, but maybe once you find the address in your pocket you will be intrigued enough to visit it."
She had wished they could drag out the day forever, but sadly there wasn't any spell to actually stop time. Now as night swirled around them, she took a deep breath and started the spell.
Phantom winds picked up in the room as she begged the gods and goddesses to turn back time, to erase the last week.
Tears streamed down her face. She would be erasing what had happened between them. He would be just a memory, one she couldn't reach and hold on to. Her heart cried out for him, for the chance together that would be stolen if they lived through this whole ordeal.
Flames shot higher from the candle. They danced in the air, forming faces and figures of divine creatures. They chanted with her. Voices working as one, yet they multiplied.
The room around them started to spin. She let go of both hands. Speaking the last of the incantation, she watched as the hands of the wristwatch that lay atop the open spell book started to move backward.
Time blurred. The icy fingers of fear gripped her, and she started to choke. She grew weak. This spell took everything out of her, and she was drained. With one last effort, she shut the book closed, watch and all, and tossed it at the fireball of chanting figures. The scent of burning wood and paper caressed her senses. It was a sweet smell, an earthy one that intoxicated her.
His Guardian Witch Page 4